


Ends of the Earth (And Probably Beyond)

by itsemmalie0821



Category: Runaways (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Pining, but he's sweet, first fic for gertchase, fluff and pining overload, idiotic Chase tries to be a hero, with some angst of course because I'm me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-23
Updated: 2018-01-30
Packaged: 2019-03-08 12:21:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13458141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/itsemmalie0821/pseuds/itsemmalie0821
Summary: It's been 6 weeks since arriving at the hostel, Gert and Chase haven't talked about what happened at the dance, and without her anxiety medication, Gert is having a harder time than anyone else dealing with everything. She's not sleeping well, almost not at all, and she's constantly on edge. What does Chase decide to do about it? He decides to go and get her her pills.





	1. Let Me Help You

**Author's Note:**

> Cool, I'm 100% obsessed with Gertchase and this show and my band of runaway children! Even with all the fanfic I write, I'm still not a very good writer so sorry for grammer mistakes (I did not have a beta for this!) and also you will find out that my kink is long, run-on sentences and too many commas.

6 weeks. 

It had been 6 weeks since the gang arrived at the dilapidated mansion, on the run from their parents; and thanks to their parents, on the run from the law, too. It was an adjustment, to say the very least. They went from Brentwood mansions, the finest of the finest to now being surrounded by dirty rooms as their hostel sank slowly underground day by day. Sharing clothes with each other because they couldn’t afford much, eating small portions of food for the same reason. They knew every time they left the hostel that venturing outside, even for necessary supplies, was a huge risk to be seen and recognized as the kids who’s faces were flashed across the television while the reporter called them kidnappers and murderers. 

They didn’t dare complain though, as odd as it sounds. At least they tried not to. They had working electricity thanks to Chase, a roof over their heads even if it was one they sometimes feared would cave in. Even a little TV they found that the boys had got working was set up in the make-shift living room. It only got two channels but they were acquiring a small DVD collection on the side. It was mostly just the dumb movies from the dollar bin at the store, the straight to DVD ones that no one had ever heard of and were never that good. But it was something to keep them preoccupied for an average of 123 minutes at a time. 

There was food and blankets and each other. They had each other; their real family. There were people around them who they loved and trusted, people they could count on. All their lives they had been friends, except for the past couple of unfortunate years, but now, being together, it was like nothing had changed. Only that isn’t true because everything has changed. But if only one thing had stayed the same, it was the trust they all had in each other. And if that had changed, it would be that their trust had only gotten stronger. 

Of course being basically trapped in close quarters with each other for such a long time, only having the same 5 people to talk to 24 hours a day 7 days a week got to be a lot. They would snap at each other, fight sometimes, argue about how to spend money. Everyone understood. They had no shortage of things to be stressed out about or frustrated with. But all of them found something to calm them down. 

It was hardest on Gert. Chase could see it. The past 6 weeks, he could see her worried eyes. Hell, even before then. Since the minute they all realized who they parents were and the kind of things they did. But nothing was like the past 6 weeks. Gert would walk around, her eyes scanning the walls of the sunken hostel, likely checking if anything had changed, searching for evidence that the building had sunk even further into the ground just over night. Chase knew before he even suggested the mansion as a place to hide out that it was a risk. As a kid, he discovered the mansion and even then it was slowly sinking. He had taken Gert there once. They couldn’t have been more than 9 or 10. It made her nervous even then to crawl inside and walk around, thinking about how the ground could severe and send them falling into the abyss of the earth and they would never be found. But 10 year Chase put his hand inside 9 year Gert’s and it calmed her enough to explore the less sunken parts. Now was no different. When they all stepped in front of the mansion 6 weeks ago, dirty and panting, tired from their half run all the way from the bus station, Chase could see it. He could tell Gert too had noticed the house had sunk more than it was all those years ago. So 17 year old Chase slipped his hand in 16 year old Gert’s hand to calm her. Even with the awkward air around them from what had happened at the dance, their heads swirling and both desperate to talk about it, but not knowing the words and knowing they would be too terrified to say anything even if they did. That was enough to calm her down in the moment as the gang crawled through the little opening that allowed them to crawl down into the mansion. But he couldn’t do that all the time, he couldn’t hold her hand every day for 6 weeks. Even if he wanted to, ached to for years, he couldn’t because he fucked it up. It was too much too fast, them sleeping together. He knew it. And he knew it when it was happening. The thought passed through his mind like a car’s headlight along a dark wall as he slipped her dress to the ground. For a long time, he wanted this, for her lips to be on his. Now they finally were and he couldn’t bring himself to stop it from continuing. So he didn’t say anything, he let himself pull her in closer, kissing her harder. 

He fucked it up. 

A one-time thing, she called it. The words burned his ear-drums, made him wish he was deaf for a moment so he didn’t have to hear her say that. Sometimes he wanted to bring it up, tell her that even if that night meant nothing to her it meant everything to him. That’s a selfish thought, though. Gert had enough things to worry about right now. They all did. But Gert couldn’t quite handle it like the others could. That was by no means her fault, or by lack of trying. Chase noticed all her little nervous behaviors like when she scanned the walls, muttering inaudible whispers under her breath, as if she could count the millimeters the building was sinking. Or how she rung her hands around each other when it was too quiet and she had too much time to think. 

She wasn’t sleeping. Chase could tell she was keeping herself up all night with her mind running ramped. The dark circles under eyes were becoming more and more evident every day. It broke Chase’s heart and he wished more than anything she had her medication. Somehow he blamed himself. Gert’s pills always helped her. How could he not make sure she had them? At night he could hear her bedroom door open and close in the room next to his as she got up repeatedly. Sometimes he would hear Old Lace shift, meaning Gert was stirring or was up pacing. Her door would creak open and not close again until a while later. She would wander around the hostel, getting lost down the corridors, even sometimes leaving to just sit on the ground right outside the door. She felt trapped, like the air was leaving her lungs with each exhale but she wasn’t getting any air back on her inhales. She needed to see the world outside, feel the cold breeze on her skin instead of looking at the bleak and stained walls inside the hostel. They all looked the same and they teased her relentlessly, forbidding her from having a moment’s peace. 

It was late. Chase was on the edge of sleep after waking up in sweat from a nightmare about his dad. Then came the creaking sound of the door he heard open too often. His eyes opened and settled on his door, as if hoping Gert would walk in and crawl inside his bed, seeking comfort in his arms. But he knew that wouldn’t happen. Before he realized what was happening, Chase’s feet were touching the ground. He needed to see her, comfort her. At least he needed to try to. She wasn’t alone and she needed to know that. 

Opening his door, he let his eyes adjust to the hallway that was much darker than his own room. He looked over to see that Gert’s door was indeed cracked open. Pushing open her door slowly, he saw no one but Old Lace curled up at the foot of the messy bed, covers thrown around like the person sleeping in it kept tossing to get comfortable. Old Lace lifted her head to see who was entering the room. Chase walked in, seating himself on the edge of the bed. Bringing his hand up, he began to carefully stroke the dinosaur’s head. The creature had a look in her eyes that Chase was sure replicated the look in his own: one that was worried about the purple haired girl who occupied the room they sat in. It actually brought Chase some contentment, to know that there were two people, well not people- but one person and one dinosaur, who wanted to do nothing but protect Gert. 

There was no way to tell how long Gert would be out of her room. On her better days, she wouldn’t be gone long, just going on a short walk to check on everyone else and survey the building. But on her worst days, she would be gone more than an hour. Those were days she knew it would be pointless to even try to fall asleep; sometimes she was even afraid to. The paralyzing thought stuck with her of the mansion collapsing on top of her in her sleep, burying her beneath the earth and waking up to be slowly suffocating on dirt and gravel, her friends dead around her. It all played out in her head like a film strip, one that she reluctantly starred in so even if she looked away, she knew what would happen scene for scene. 

Tonight must have been a better night. After only about half an hour, a flash of purple hair whipped around the door frame. Chase didn’t even notice. His hand was still on top of the dinosaur’s head, fingers stroking slowly. His eyes were fighting the urge to close, the quiet and still of the room making him realize how tired he was. The very first thing Gert noticed was a figure sitting on her bed. 

“Chase?” she asked in a voice that gave away just how much she desired sleep. Chase looked up to see Gert and her tired eyes. They looked heavy. Even in the dark, Chase could tell they were slightly pink. “What are you doing in here?” 

“I heard you get up. Are you ok?” 

Chase removed his hand from Old Lace’s head and settled both of his hands in his lap. Waiting for Gert to move closer was like a marathon. It seemed to last forever and went almost in slow motion. Her arms had been crossed over her chest since the moment Chase looked up at her. It was to protect herself, he knew that. She did it a lot. But he never said anything. He let her protect herself if that’s what she felt she had to do. But he doesn’t want her to feel like she has to protect herself around him. Hurting her is the last thing he wants to do. Even with that thought, he knows he has already hurt her before. When he ditched her and the others to be popular Chase Stein, that hurt her. When he started ignoring her and even laughing in the background when his teammates made fun of her, that hurt her. So maybe she was right to protect herself from him. Maybe all he would ever do is hurt her. Maybe he would never be anything but the disappointment his dad always said he was. 

“I’m fine. Just couldn’t sleep,” Gert answering, not even bothering to try and look like she meant it. Her arms softened a bit, became less tight, but remained crossed over her chest. Her eyes suddenly caught his and lingered there. Whatever she found inside of them must have eased her, or maybe she was just too tired to care, because her arms dropped to her sides and her feet carried her forward. Crawling onto the bed, she moved past Chase to lay on her bed with her eyes on the ceiling. 

Inside Chase was terrified that Gert would tell him to leave, go back to his own room, and leave her alone. But she stayed quiet, her eyes on the ceiling. Taking a chance, Chase pushed all his weight back on the bed and laid down next to Gert, staring up at the ceiling like her. It was quiet. Maybe not too quiet, but quiet. Chase hated quiet. It could be so easily interrupted by screaming and then all of a sudden there were fists flying at your face or your stomach. Quiet was eerie. Gert hated quiet. The thoughts of trouble and things to worry about could find her too easily in the quiet. All her past mistakes, all her past actions, could come back and haunt her. Every single thought in her head suffocated her like they threaded together into a noose around her neck. For her, the quiet was always too loud. 

“You don’t have to stay here, Chase,” Gert whispered. Chase turned his head to look at her but found her eye sight still turned away from him. “You can go back to sleep.” 

Chase wouldn’t think of it. He wouldn’t leave her when he could tell she needed someone with her. She would never admit it, he didn’t expect her to, especially not to him. But he wanted to be here for her. Nothing was more prominent in his mind than to push his luck and stay with her. 

Little did he know, it was his presence Gert craved. 

“Are you sure you’re ok?” he whispered. Gert nodded, turning her head to Chase. The tears threatening to spill over the edges of her eyes were deadly evident. 

“No you’re not…okay, Gert,” Chase said, his voice careful to sound more concerned than accusatory. 

More silence fell upon them as their eyes bored into each other. The quiet was again inching closer to destroying both teenagers. Then came a sound that Chase would gladly trade in for quiet. Gert released a small sob, one that dug through her throat like it had been trying to come out for some time. She moved her hands up to cover her face, trying to collect herself. 

“I need my medication, Chase,” she admitted through choked back sobs. “I don’t know how to handle any of this! And I can't sleep and I can barely even go outside because we’re wanted criminals! We are actually being accused of murder. My head won't shut up about any of it. And on top of everything we’re stuck in this stupid building that is going to bury us underground any minute now! We’re screwed! Chase I just want everything to s-stop!” 

“Hey, hey, hey it’s alright!” Chase knew it was a lie. Nothing about their current situation was alright. But he didn’t know what to do. Karolina was always the best at calming Gert during a panic. 

“No it’s not alright Chase! It-i-it’s no-not,” Gert’s voice stuttered as her breathing quickened to a pace Chase had seen only a few times in his life. 

Strong arms wrapped around a panting Gert, pulling her into Chase’s chest. “Listen to me. Just breathe how I'm breathing ok. Just match my breathing,” Chase’s voice spoke. 

Having her in his arms felt natural. It reminded him of that night at the dance that felt like forever ago and he suddenly felt a pang in his chest from knowing he hasn’t touched her enough since. His hands moved to rub slow circles in her back. His chest felt the heaviness as Gert panted up and down, trying to match the slower breaths Chase was taking underneath her. Chase wanted to hug her tighter, closer, shield her from any more harm or hurt. But he held himself back. Right now, mid anxiety attack while Gert was just trying to breathe properly was not the time to be squeezing her too tight. It took a few minutes but eventually Gert’s breaths caught up with Chase’s. 

More than anything, Chase wanted to stay like this, curled up with Gert with her head on his chest. The tight, constricting feeling Gert had in her chest that flowed through her whole body had her with tightened fists, so tight she was surprised her hands didn’t break into dust. But now, relaxed, they were loose, just lightly gripping at Chase’s t-shirt. Everything was so hectic. With normal breathing now, still trying to keep beat with Chase, everything was still so hectic. But with every inhale, she calmed just a bit more. Mostly because with every inhale she took in a little of Chase’s scent. It wasn’t all Chase, most of it was the cheap Tide knock-off detergent they used to do laundry just a couple days ago. There was something about the way it mixed with Chase’s natural scent that was able to take over her mind for moments at a time. She closed her eyes for a minute, trying to pretend that they weren’t on the run in some hostel, but that they were just at home back in Brentwood in one of their beds. She made the mistake of opening her eyes and revealing where they really were. 

“Thanks,” her voice whispered. 

She felt the arms wrapped around tighten as if Chase was trying to keep her near him. He was of course. Now that her breathing was slow, he was afraid she would crawl out of his arms and make him leave. He wanted to stay right here, with her, in this calm state of mind that he never really got to feel. 

“I really need my pills,” Gert muttered, like she wasn’t talking to Chase but just to herself. 

Both teens eventually fell asleep in the quiet comfort of each other. Chase woke up the next morning to find Gert still wrapped in his arms. His arm was thrown around her, her back pressed firmly into his chest. Her own hands gripped onto Chase’s arm, as if trying to keep him close. A grin appeared on Chase’s lips the moment he processed the position they were in. Even in his sleep, he needed to be close to her, keep her close to him. It wasn’t too surprising to him. He didn’t want to wake her or put an end to this closeness they had in the moment. It also appeared she was sleeping soundly and he didn’t want to deny her of that rest she so desperately needed, but couldn’t get much of lately. So he just buried his face into her hair, letting the loose strands tickle his skin. Inching slightly, he tightened his hold on the girl in his arms. She shifted, but only to tighten her grip on his arms as she subconsciously felt him pull her closer. 

In no way had Chase forgotten the night before. Gert needed those pills. She was struggling, suffering even. The image of her fighting to breathe tore at his heart and plastered itself on every inch of his mind, like the banners that hung on every free space of wall on Downtown LA buildings. Chase had to get those pills. He wasn’t sure how yet but he knew he would tear down cities if it could help Gert. 

……………………………………….

It wasn’t a perfect plan. In fact it was kind of messy and risky. Ok… very risky. But Chase couldn’t not try. It was a couple of days after Gert’s panic attack. The sun had just set beyond the horizon and Chase was sitting on the dirty yellow couch that had sat in the make-shift living room since day 1. He had to wait for everyone to go to bed for his plan to begin. Sneaking away from the hostel and everyone inside seemed easy enough. That seemed like the only easy part of this plan. Everything else was going to be hard. 

Nico was the last one to be up, watching one of the DVDs they had stacked in a pile by the television. She had seen it maybe 20 times by now, but she was bored and in no mood to go to sleep. Chase tried to pretend like he was watching the movie, even though he doubted Nico was even paying attention to him, but his brain was elsewhere. His brain was busy trying to formulate a last minute plan as to how he was going to get all the way to Brentwood and into Gert’s house for her medication without being caught. Much easier said than done. And it wasn’t even that easy to say, if that was any indication of hard this would be. 

Not even when the movie had ended, Nico stood up from her spot in the ratty old black chair she had claimed as ‘her spot’ when they first arrived at the mansion and saw it sitting in the corner. 

“I give up. I’m going to bed,” she muttered in Chase’s direction as she stomped off down the hall to her and Karolina’s room. Chase was alone. Everyone had gone to bed. It wasn’t long now before he would leave the minor safety of the hostel to venture outside to their old neighborhood. 

Before walking off to his own room, Chase turned off all the lights and the TV. In his room, he just laid casually in his bed, back resting against the headboard. He wanted to let the silence settle in, give everyone a chance to fall deeper into the sleep he assumed they were in by now. Peaking outside his bedroom door, everything looked peaceful. This was his chance. Quickly, he dug through his duffle bag for a pair to jeans and a black hoodie to replace the t-shirt and sweatpants he had on now. He tip-toed through the hallway, careful to avoid any of the creaks the old, decrepit hardwood floor had to offer on the way to the exit to the outside. 

“Chase?” a voice startled him. 

His head whipped around to see Molly standing the middle of the hall. “Molly it’s late. What are you doing up?” Chase knew his words were too fast, jumbled and the complete opposite of casual. He silently cursed himself. If Molly found out what he was doing she would either want to come with him or she would tell Gert in a heartbeat. Both of those scenarios would earn Chase a punch in the gut from Gert. 

“I was just getting a glass of water,” Molly answered, holding up the half empty glass of water in her hand. “What are you doing up?” 

“I just- uh- couldn’t sleep. I was going to walk around for a bit,” Chase lied. He could see Molly squint her eyes, clearly not completely believing the story she was being fed. Her lips parted, but before any words or sounds could come out, Chase spoke first. “Go ahead back to bed Molly.” 

The younger girl must have been tired because she did what she was told with little to no hesitation, turning back around with shrugged shoulders and shuffling back to her room. Breathing a sigh of relief, Chase hustled through the hall quickly to avoid having to lie to anyone else who might be up. Shimmying his way out the door, he finally felt the cool night air hit face. He knew the way to Brentwood, he even knew a shortcut. He knew he should be regretting what he was doing, attempting. But he couldn’t find it in him to regret anything. Gert was back inside the hostel, probably tossing and turning in her bed, her breathe quicker than it should be. There was nothing in him that regretted what he was doing. 

……………………………………….

“Gert,” Molly whispered, shaking her sister lightly as the purple haired girl slept in her bed. Gert made a slight moaning sound that was just barely audible and not good enough for Molly. “Gert wake up!” 

“I’m barely asleep Molls! What?” Gert grumbled, her head still buried in her pillow with her eyes closed. 

“Do you know where Chase is?” 

Gert’s eyes suddenly burst open to hear the question, mostly the name. “What? Molly what are you talking about? What time is it? He’s probably sleeping,” she rambled. Molly sat herself on the edge of Gert’s bed, a concern taking over all of her features. 

“He’s not in his room!” Molly revealed. 

“Molly start at the beginning. What’s going on?” Gert’s stern words made it sound like she wasn’t half asleep just moments ago. Flinging the covers off of her, she got up from the bed and marched toward the door of her room. The soft thuds of Molly’s feet followed after her as she tried to keep up with determined Gert making her way to Chase’s next door room. 

“I was up getting water,” Molly started as Gert flew Chase’s door open to find the room completely empty. “And Chase was up. He was acting weird and he said he couldn’t sleep. I thought he was just going to go sit outside like you do sometimes.” Gert rolled her eyes hearing it. Only Chase and Molly knew she sat outside the hostel sometimes at night. She didn’t mind if Karolina found out but she had a feeling Nico and Alex would freak out if they knew she was risking being seen, even if it was the middle of the night and who the hell would be out here to see her anyway? “But I looked outside and he wasn’t there!” 

It was the middle of the night. Chase was nowhere in sight and could’ve possibly lied to Molly about why he was up. That wasn’t like Chase at all. He was honest and good, trustworthy. He was one of the few people Gert trusted. Why would he leave? Where would he go? 

Then suddenly, something in her clicked. 

“Shit!” she burst. Her feet carried her from the scruffy-haired boy’s empty room back into her own, searching the floor for a pair of matching shoes and a jacket. 

Molly looked confused. Gert wasn’t saying any real words or telling her what was going on. She seemed to know where Chase had gone or what he was doing. That wasn’t surprising. Molly figured if anyone knew where Chase had gone, it would be Gert; that’s why she woke her up. But right now, with Gert muttering to herself under her breath, she looked frantic, hectic. It was worrying Molly more than she already was because what if Chase was in trouble? 

Molly kept trying to call Gert’s name to ask what was happening. But Gert was too busy changing out of her sleep shorts to slip on leggings and a shirt that looked suspiciously like one of Chase’s t-shirts to hear her name being called repeatedly. “Gert!” a frustrated Molly yelled after 6 other attempts to get Gert’s attention failed. “What’s going on?” 

“I know where Chase went.” 

“…well?” Molly asked impatiently as Gert headed out the door of her room. 

“That idiot went to get me my anxiety medication!” 

They had talked about it. Well, more like Chase mentioned it briefly to Gert right before she shut him down saying it was too dangerous to even talk about. And after the night before, she felt it that that’s where he had to be. God that idiot didn’t understand that this was making her more anxious. All she could think of was something happening to Chase. Getting spotted or recognized or even caught were all on the line. Her mind kept replaying the fact that he didn’t say goodbye. But then her chest tightened at the thought that goodbye was necessary in this moment, that Chase wasn’t somebody she would see again. If he didn’t come back, she couldn’t tell him how she felt, that she was just being dumb and afraid when she called what they did a one-time thing. It could never be a one-time thing. She would do that every day if she could. Last night, in his arms, wrapped up and safe, that was the best sleep she had gotten since they got to this place. Now she couldn’t get away from the thought that stupid, dumb Chase had ruined all of that by trying to be the freaking hero. She wouldn’t have it. 

She could hear Molly following her out her bedroom door and down the hallway. “How do you know that’s where he went?” Molly asked. 

As if offended that someone questioned her knowledge of the boy she had known her whole life, Gert whipped around to face Molly. “Because I know Chase! I know him. I’m not letting him risk his life.” 

“You’re being a bit dramatic. He’s not going to die. Maybe you should just let him-” 

“He’s risking getting caught!” Gert demanded. “So he’s risking something. And it’s because of me and I’m not letting that happen.” Gert turned on her heels, determined that she was wasting too much time. Any second, Chase could be recognized. For all she knew the cops were being called as they spoke or Chase was in the back of a cop car. Molly made a move and opened her mouth to speak, but Gert wasn’t talking about it anymore. She had to go get Chase and get him back safely to the mansion so she could yell at him. 

“I don’t-” 

“Molls I am going to get Chase! Just stay here and wait for me to get back.” 

“I’m going with you,” Molly said as some sort of announcement or blunt statement, rather than a request or question. 

Gert chuckled, thinking that had to be some type of joke. “No Molly!” she ordered like an angry mother. Gert had a habit lately of having moments where she acted more like a mother than a sister. It never bugged Molly too much. She knew it gave Gert a feeling of having some fort of control. It calmed her head a bit, like it was one less think to worry about. That was one less aspect of her new life that could go spiraling out of control at any moment. But right now it did bug Molly. Chase was just as much her friend as he was anyone else’s here. They spent a lot of time together during the day and he was starting to feel like an older brother. Maybe he always had that kind of vibe to her, but stuck together 24/7 in this underground hell, that brought just about all of them closer, even if it did make them want to rip each other’s head off sometimes. Molly was worried about Chase, too, especially after seeing Gert’s reaction. “It’s bad enough that Chase is in danger right now, I don’t need you to be in danger too. You are staying here,” Gert stern voice commanded. 

Molly kept following her sister as she walked towards to font door of the hostel. “If you think I’m letting you go by yourself, you’re crazy,” she bit back. Gert turned to her again but before she could say anything, a smirk made its way to Molly’s lips. “You know you don’t even have time to argue with me.” The slick smirk grew as she watched the purple haired girl in front of her struggle to find a comeback. 

“Fine! But you move quickly and do what I say, alright?”


	2. Regrets Are Few

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chase goes on a dangerous mission and Gertchase has the talk I cannot wait for them to canonically have on screen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One day I'll learn how to use commas correctly. I promise....

Chase couldn’t say he regretted what he was doing. But right now, as he creeped through the streets of the old Brentwood neighborhood, he would lying if he said he wasn’t at least terrified. It hadn’t been long since he had been here technically. 6 weeks felt like forever, but he knew it wasn’t as long as it seemed. But everything looked different. It was like he didn’t recognize the houses that he drove past every day. The street signs looked different and the air felt heavier, like he was on a whole new planet. 

Get in and get out. He kept repeating that in his mind. Get in, get the pills, and get out. Get back to her; get back to Gert. 

Chase moved quickly, squatting behind bushes and darting to shield himself from anyone’s eye sight behind cars parked on the street side. It was the middle of the night and the posh neighborhood certainly didn’t have many people who were still up. Even if anyone was up, they probably weren’t looking out their windows. But he didn’t want to take the risk of being seen. People in this neighborhood, they knew him. They would recognize Chase Stein walking around the neighborhood and call the cops in a heartbeat. And even if they didn’t recognize him, with the hood of his black sweatshirt pulled on top of his head, they would for sure call the cops at the sight of some sketchy figure wandering though the wealthy neighborhood, hiding behind cars and sprinting from bush to bush. 

The night air had started picking up, sending shivers through Chase’s body. His mind wandered off to Gert, who had kept him so warm the night before. She always ran hot, the opposite of Chase, whose skin was always chilled. When they were kids and all 6 of them would have sleepovers, Chase would always demand to put his sleeping bag next to Gert’s so the warmth radiating off of her would help him sleep. Not that they slept much. During just about every sleepover, those two would be the ones to stay up late after all the others went to sleep, talking about anything and everything. Part of him wished Gert was here with him now, so he could slide his hand into hers and feel the warmth flow through his fingertips and into every vein his body held. 

Finally, the house Chase spent so much of his childhood at appeared in his eye line. The house, although severely large in size, wasn’t intimidating, nor where the people inside. Dale and Stacey Yorkes were two of his favorite people in the world. Their daughters were pretty great too, but that’s a different story. It was hardest to believe the Yorkes were murderers. All the other parents, he could believe. Especially his own father, that he would believe in a heartbeat. His mom was a harder sell, but if it kept his father happy, if it was what he wanted her to do, then it wasn’t so hard for Chase to picture. 

Shaking his head, Chase cleared his mind, getting his head on straight. His thoughts were a distraction. Thinking about the memories he had inside the house that he was about to break into. Looking up to make sure no one was around, Chase sprinted from behind the shiny Range Rover parked on the curb to the gate that went around to the back of the Yorkes home. He picked the lock easy, slipping inside before anyone could see. Around the back, there was a large tree that didn’t look any smaller than it had when they were kids and they would spend all day climbing it. With its huge leafy branches, Chase found it easy to climb up a ways that lead directly to Gert’s bedroom window. 

In his younger days, late nights would find him climbing the tree and tapping on the glass of her window after particularly bad fights with his dad. Long sleeves would be covering the bruises on his arms or stomach. Gert wouldn’t ask too many questions, she knew enough. Chase and his dad never got along, even when he was really young, they would fight, yell back and forth as he got older. The bruises and the scars and the physical proof that his dad wasn’t a good guy like a lot of people thought, all of those were a secret to Gert. Chase didn’t want her know and thankfully, she didn’t ask many questions when he crawled through her window. They would just sit and talk, sometimes Gert would fall asleep and Chase would sit in the comfort of her safe home before covering her with a blanket and going back to his own house. 

It was the same now climbing up the tree, taking the same path he used to. It wasn’t until he got to the window that he got concerned that it might not be unlocked. It hadn’t occurred to him because Gert always left the window unlocked. Maybe she started locking it during the past 2 years when Chase would never climb through her window, even though he always wanted to. 

He pushed up on the window sill and found he got lucky. It slide open with no noise and no trouble, just like he remembered. His eyes scanned the room, searching for any sign of life. When he found nothing, he lifted his leg over the sill, followed closely by his other until his feet touched down on the hardwood floor. He froze in place. Suddenly he realized he didn’t know what to do now. He never knew where Gert kept her pills, she didn’t even start taking them until a year before they separated. He glanced around, nervous, knowing a wrench was just thrown in his ‘get in and get out’ plan. 

He started going through drawers, jewelry boxes, different bags and backpacks she had around her room. Figuring it was better he work slowly as to not make too much noise, he opened each drawer with care not wanting to jostle anything inside. His footsteps were carefully placed, even if it was cliché like he was in some cartoon movie where the whole floor was lined with squeaking rubber ducks he could step on. God why did she have so many drawers in her room? All his money would have been staked on the medication being in the small drawer of her nightstand. But it wasn’t. Running a hand through his hair, Chase had a moment where he thought about giving up and going back to the hostel, maybe coming back. Maybe Gert would tell him where her pills were and he could come back more prepared. But that’s a ridiculous thought because Gert would never tell him. Telling him meant he would for sure come back, for sure risk himself and the group. So no, she wouldn’t tell him, he knew that. The bathroom connected to Gert’s room was the last place to check without having to venture into other parts of the house. Unless Gert’s parents moved her pills, there would be no reason for them to be anywhere but in Gert’s own room or bathroom. 

Chase flicked the light on in the bathroom. He knew he had already been in the house too long, been away from the hostel for too long. He had to work fast. The same rhythm of slowly opening each drawer and looking more with his eyes than with his hands to avoid noise followed him in the bathroom. The orange bottle didn’t show itself until Chase had hit his last hope and opened the mirrored cabinet on the side of the wall. Right there, the name Gertrude Yorkes typed on the front in bold black letters, sat the object of Chase’s current affection. His hand reached up to grab the bottle. He wasn’t sure if it was just luck or a coincidence, or maybe both, that the bottle looked full, as if the prescription had been refilled just a couple days before the teens left home. 

Closing the cabinet door quietly and slipping the pill bottle into his pocket, his feet had barely taken a step before a loud alarm sounded through the home. His mind raced. Had he set off some silent alarm? Were the Yorkes awake? Were the cops already on their way? Chase didn’t know what else to do except the same thing he did that one day at the bus station: run. His feet carried him across the room, not bothering to be quiet or even turn the bathroom light off. As if the cops were already at his heels, he nearly jumped out of the window and leaped down the tree one branch to another, cutting his hand in the process. Running out the gate, he crashed into a figure. At first he easily mistook it for Stacey or Dale, his head not on straight and his vision blurry from his daring escape out of the house. 

But then his eyes caught Molly standing next to whoever he crashed into, her breath panting like his was. He noticed the flash of purple in his lower eye line. 

“Chase!” Gert’s voice yelled. She threw her arms around his neck like she had never come in contact with anything more beautiful. Chase felt himself be removed from the situation. The loud alarm in the Yorkes house was still sounding, now being heard from the street with the front door open. But Gert’s arms were clutching him so tight, her mind overcome with both fear and joy. Chase’s strong arms wrapped around the girl just as tight. Neither seemed like they would ever move if they had the choice, like this was the place they wanted to be out of everywhere in the world. Molly seemed to be the only one to realize that now was not the time or place. 

“Sorry to break up the reunion but we have to go!” she yelled as she looked up and saw a light in one of the second story rooms turn on. 

Reluctantly, Gert and Chase pulled apart, but not without locking hands with intertwining fingers. The three teens sprinted down the street towards the way they all knew as a shortcut back to the hostel. They didn’t stop. Not until the sunken hostel was in their eyesight did they reduce their speed to a half walk. Eventually, they stopped moving entirely, figuring they were safe and that no one had followed them. Molly sunk down into a squat, her breathing uneven and hollow. Gert had never been so happy to see the sunken building she was staying in. She took her hand back from Chase, only just noticing how tight she was clutching it the whole way. Or maybe it was Chase who was clutching? Probably not, it was probably her own anxiety driven worry that made her tighten her grip. She thought about how Chase was undoubtedly happy she took her hand back, letting it now sit on one of her knees as she leaned over to catch her breath. 

“What happened back there? What was that alarm?” Chase asked through breathless pants. 

“My parents must have set an alarm on the front door. I unlocked it and that crazy siren went off!” Gert explained. She couldn’t believe her parents did that. She had kept her key to her house in case she ever needed to go back. The thought that her parents would one day want to make amends or she would be proven wrong about them. Deep inside she knew it would never happen, that the parents she knew were gone and had replaced by the mental image of them killing innocent kids for their cult church. 

“They booby-trapped us!” Molly whined from the ground. 

“That’s a way to put it,” Gert said more to herself. 

Silence settled around the three teens as they caught their breath and tried to let the cool night air reduce the sweat on their foreheads. Chase looked down at Gert who was still bent over, her hands on her knees. If he had to place the look she had in her eye when they came in contact outside the house that used to be hers, he would call it worry. He saw it a lot over the past few weeks and was getting good at spotting it on her features. 

“What were you guys even doing there?” he asked. Molly stayed quiet, her eyes moving to Gert. Chase’s eyes followed in suit but found one of Gert’s famous glares looking back at him. 

“We went to get you, idiot!” 

Gert didn’t even wait for a reply before stomping off back into the hostel. Chase stared after her, searching for a reply in his head even if she wasn’t in front of him anymore. He didn’t want her to be at risk. And she brought Molly? His head was spinning thinking about the risks and the consequences. He turned to Molly, who didn’t look like she knew what to say any more than he did. 

“I assume you told her you saw me get up?” he asked the curly haired girl. She nodded, seeming to not know if she regretted telling on Chase. “How did you guys know where I went?” To his surprise, Molly actually cracked a smile at that question. 

“Gert just knew. She freaked out,” Molly revealed. Chase could feel his body perk up and his eyes widen. To hear that Gert freaked out, it almost confused him. He was just Chase. No one worried about him, no one did things to protect him. He was used to it. After all this time, he didn’t expect anything different. Didn’t Gert have enough things to worry about? She didn’t need to drive herself crazy worrying about Chase; especially if worrying about Chase meant risking herself to follow him on his desperate mission. “Chase?” Molly called out, interrupting his space out. “Please go talk to her. You two are being stupid.” 

With those words, Molly retreated into the hostel, leaving Chase to ponder what her words meant. To him, the only one being stupid was him. Nothing about Gert could ever be stupid. She was the smartest person he had ever met, his father included. She just knew things, about the world and about people. She always knew him best and it didn’t come as a surprise to him that she knew exactly where he was tonight, as much as it did come as a surprise that she actually went after him. 

A shiver ran through Chase and he shoved his hands in the pockets of his hoodie. He grasped at the bottle inside with his hand, only now remembering the reason for all of this. He walked into the hostel and immediately made his way to Gert’s room. The quiet that filled all the hallways made it clear that the girls hadn’t told the others about Chase’s late night outing. He was thankful for that, he didn’t feel like getting an earful from every single one of them. Right now, he just wanted to talk to Gert. He stood outside her closed bedroom door, trying to find words. Without any kind of knowledge of what to say, he pushed the door open a little. Gert was inside, quietly walking back and forth across the floor. Even with her form moving, Chase could see the worry lines stretched across her forehead, the little crinkle under her eye that said she was stewing in concern, and the way her lips stretched into a frown. 

Her lips. 

Not the time Chase! He shook the thought from his head and stepped further into the room, stopping just in front of the door. Gert’s eyes occasionally spotted him in the corner of her sight but never stayed on him. She was so angry she couldn’t see straight. She couldn’t remember being this mad at Chase. The only time that came close was when they were in first grade and he accidentally threw her stuffed dinosaur into the water at the beach and she didn’t speak to him for two days. 

“You’re mad,” Chase said. It wasn’t a question. 

“No shit! Did you figure that out all on your own?” Gert berated, swinging her body around to face him as he stood in the doorway. “What the hell were you thinking Chase? You can't just go run off by yourself on some pointless, dangerous mission!” 

“It wasn’t pointless,” Chase got in when Gert stopped yelling to take a breath. He pulled the pill bottle out of his pocket. “I got these for you.” Walking over to Gert, he set the pill bottle on the tiny nightstand next to the bed. The moment he got too close, Gert’s arms immediately flew up to cross over her chest. 

“I didn’t ask you to do that.” 

“You needed them.” Chase’s voice was stern and strong. He wasn’t about to apologize or make excuses. She needed those pills and he would do everything again if she needed something else. He should’ve told her that. He could feel the words sitting in his mouth, on top of his tongue. He should’ve told her. He would do anything for her, go where she needed him to go, get what she needed him to get. He should have told her. Right here and now with her glare practically baring a hole in his head. But the words wouldn’t come out. They would remain said only in his head until he built up enough courage to say them out loud. He didn’t think that would ever happen though. His dad had worked his whole life to make sure that courage wasn’t something Chase felt like he had any of. As of right now, it seemed his dad had done a good job of that. 

“It is not your job to take care of me, Chase.” It could be. “I am not your responsibility,” Gert protested. He wanted her to be. “It’s not a big deal.” 

She is a god-damn big deal. To him. 

Words and revelations that he should be saying ran through Chase’s head. His eyes crinkled as he tried to force them out, but they kept getting caught in his throat like a traffic jam. They were both waiting for each other to say something, anything. But silence surrounded them, filling the air in the room as they breathed it in. They hated silence now more than ever. Gert tightened her arms over her chest in fear of what Chase would say. She was sure he would realize she was right, agree with her. It was the worst she could do, she thought, was to delude herself into thinking that she meant something important to him. 

“Alright. I’m sorry,” Chase almost whispered. His eye contact wondered off as his words trailed out of his mouth and he only let himself look anywhere besides where Gert was. The purple haired girl breathed in and out a sigh, turning her head away to choke in a sniffle. She pushed her hair out of her face before returning her eyes to Chase. “But Gert I-” 

“I don’t want to talk about it Chase. Can you just go, please?” she murmured. Always pushing people away. Gert cursed herself under her breathe. More than anything she was wishing that Chase would ignore her, know what she was doing and stay here. Her heart dropped when she saw him take a small step back. She wouldn’t blame him, couldn’t blame him really. All she ever did lately was push him away. At a certain point he had to believe she meant it. But this felt easier, watching him walk out the door because she told him to leave rather than because he desperately wanted to. Letting the feeling of him being with her, letting that feeling burrow deeper into her until it’s all she knows, and then watching him walk out on her would be too hard to take. So as hard as it was watching him inch backwards until he was out her room, door closed behind him, it wasn’t a hard as it could be. 

She was alone. Her head hadn’t shut up since she Molly had woken her up earlier. But now it was running haywire. Every thought had its own loud speaker and was talking over each other, not caring if Gert was going crazy in the process. The bottle on the table caught her attention. She had gotten used to living without her pills, trying daily to just naturally drown out the scenarios playing in her head that were always worst-case scenario. Truthfully, it wasn’t working out well. She reached for the bottle, desperate to alleviate her brain. 

…………………………………….

Chase laid in his bed, his mind nowhere close to sleep. Why did he say sorry? He didn’t mean it. Even after everything that happened, after everything went wrong and had the definite potential to go even more wrong, he wasn’t sorry. Gert could feel better, live easier now. Well, as easy as the rest of them were living. 

He ran his hands over his face, groaning into them. The creaking sound of the door opening caused him to jump in place. But looking up, he saw only Gert, entering the room with care as if she thought she wouldn’t be welcome. That thought would have made Chase laugh if he wasn’t so taken by her presence. Keeping her eyes on him, she made her way over to sit on the side edge of his bed, then moved her eyes to the floor. Chase carefully lifted himself and scooted closer to her, resting his knee on top of her leg. He wanted to say something. Well, he wanted to say a lot of things. But he thought he should let her speak first, seeing as she was the one who came into his room. 

“I took a couple of my pills,” she finally said, after several minutes of silence. 

“Do you feel better?” 

“A little bit,” Gert admitted. Already, Chase could feel himself want to take back his sorry from earlier. That statement from her was all he needed. She felt better. Even the look on her face told him so much. The crinkle in her forehead was gone after being seemingly permanently etched into her forehead for the past month and a half. She wasn’t picking at her nails or wringing her hands. He was sure there was still some kind of war going on in her mind, but if the physical signs weren’t all there like they had been recently, then it must not be so bad. At least not in the moment. “Thank you,” Gert’s voice whispered so soft Chase wasn’t even sure he was supposed to hear it. 

Finally, Gert’s eyes wandered up to meet his and Chase was sure he was supposed to hear her thanks. A grin pulled at the corners of his lips. It was the kind of genuine smile that only really happened around Gert. The rest of the runaways, as they had taken to calling themselves, made that grin show itself too. But mostly Gert. She made him smile a lot, she always had. Even when they were kids; even after a fight with his dad when the last thing he thought he could do was smile. It was Gert. It was always Gert, maybe- no… probably, most definitely before he ever even knew it was her, it was Gert. 

“I'm not sorry, you know,” Chase spoke up. The words were out of his mouth before he could even think about them. He almost wished he could take it back, he almost wished the confession had stayed trapped in his head. He wanted Gert to have a mere moments semi-peace before she had to deal with whatever words were coming out of his mouth. But it was too late. The words were out and he might as well keep going. “I'm not sorry I went to get your pills. You needed them.” Gert’s wide eyes stared up at Chase, almost like she knew exactly what to expect, and that she wasn’t ready to hear it. “And I'm not sorry about what happened at the dance.” With that, a memory both so sweet and painful brought up, Gert visibly retreated into herself. Chase wanted to shake her out of this insecurity and tell her it’s stupid because she’s beautiful and smart and funny and the only person who makes him feel like just being Chase is enough. 

“It…it was a….one-time thing… right?” she asked, spacing out her words like she was having trouble thinking of simple things like grammar at a time like this. 

“Was it? Look, Gert, if that’s all it was to you, just some end of the world last hookup then tell me. If that’s what you want, then just say it. But don’t say it if you’re only saying it because you think that’s what I want. Because it’s not. I like you, ok?” Chase’s voice shook as he spoke the truth he never thought he would have the strength to say. But maybe that’s what Gert did to him, he thought. She made him stronger, or at least made him think he was stronger than he really was. Maybe it was all some fake or imaginary strength. As long as it got the job done though, right? 

“You like me?” The voice coming from Gert was small and timid. In her head, she was afraid of the answer. Even though she had basically just heard the answer to the question, she couldn’t be sure that her brain hadn’t jumbled it up, tricked her into hearing something different than what Chase had actually said. 

The grin on Chase’s lips grew a little wider, hearing the shy fear in Gert’s voice. “Of course. I was just too much of an idiot to realize it years ago,” he smirked. 

“I told you I don’t think you’re an idiot,” Gert was quick to retort. “You’re smart, Chase. And sweet and brave and…. You’re Chase,” she finished off, like the declaration of being ‘Chase’ was some great achievement. 

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” 

Chase reached up to push a loose strand of purple hair behind Gert’s ear. Half way through the action, he questioned if he should be doing it. He didn’t want to push Gert or make her feel uncomfortable, like he was too close. A smile formed on her lips to match his. 

“It’s a really good thing,” she smiled. Chase let his hand linger there on her cheek, his fingers pressed into the side strands of her hair. 

“One-time thing?” he asked, not sure he was fully getting the answer he hoped to get, had been hoping to get for years. 

The girl in front of his said nothing at first. Like he had had to do earlier and gather up every inch of courage he had, she was now doing the same. It was a lot to take in. Her mind had just barely quieted down and here she was, having this conversation with Chase. His hand felt so good on her cheek, his chilled skin cooling her flushed cheeks. She always like that about him; that his temperature ran a little cooler. She was always so hot, like there were too many people in the room even if she was alone. Sometimes it felt like she was on fire. But Chase’s cool, borderline cold, hand resting on her skin helped her breathe. She shook her head and let out a small “no.” The word was quiet. She was barely sure he had heard her. She was about to repeat herself, louder and more audible, when she noticed Chase lean into her.

Yeah, he heard her. 

Their lips met, and it was like nothing they had felt before. Even at the dance, unsure and hot with passion fueled by the possible end of the world, their kisses didn’t feel like this. They had time now. They had clarity. Gert smiled into the kiss because Chase kissed her like she was the single most important thing he had ever laid his hands on. Chase shivered because Gert kissed him like he was something to be cherished, something to be protected. Those were two things Chase never felt deserved of. They pulled apart needing air, realizing they couldn’t just breathe in each other and be fine. Chase’s lips pressed a soft kiss to Gert’s forehead. It was late, they were both tired. They could talk more tomorrow, kiss more tomorrow. They both knew they would probably be doing more of the second thing than the first thing. The two crawled up to the top of the bed. Gert pulled the blanket up over both of them as Chase pulled Gert tightly into his arms, letting her nestle her head in the crook of his neck and throw her arm over his chiseled chest. 

Chase fell asleep first, but Gert wasn’t far behind. He could expect an earful from Gert about risking so much to get her those pills, even though he would defend every move he made. But god, Gert was grateful. Her mind wasn’t quite quiet. There were still a million thoughts running through it. But if it wasn’t put on mute, the volume was at least turned down a lot. At this point, she was probably only as worried as the rest of them. A vast improvement on her former state from feeling like the walls were going to crumble around her at any moment. And Chase was holding her. He was holding her like he didn’t ever want to let her go. He was holding her like he did the night of the dance, only it’s better now because she knows what it means. They had no plan about their parents, or about being wanted criminals, or even about what they were going to do in the mean time until they had a real plan. But Gert knew that when she woke up Chase would be there. He would be holding her and kissing her like she was his to kiss because she was. 

After all this time, she was finally was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys so much for reading! I'm going to be writing a bunch more Runaways fics because the wait for season 2 is already killllllllllling me. 
> 
> Make sure to find me on tumblr so we can have endless talks about gertchase and the rest of my runaway children
> 
> See you in the next story!

**Author's Note:**

> Basically, this turned out waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay longer than I thought it would be or meant for it to be. So I split it into 2 parts! I'll have part 2 up as soon as I can. But i'm also working on like 3 other gertchase fics so i'll try to devote most of my time to finishing this. 
> 
> Find me on tumblr so we can ramble on for days at a time about Runaways and gertchase and deanoru (who are not in this fic but i love them too). I'm on tumblr as behappyitsemmalie. 
> 
> Leave me a comment to let me know how you liked it! My favorite kinds are the long rambling ones that look more like essays. Those are my favorite kind of comments haha Much love to the fandom!


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